This year add play to your agenda

January means back to school for the kids, clearing out the holiday decorations, trying to fit back into the pre-holiday season jeans, and filling the schedule with all the things we hope to accomplish in the new year. Time to renew that gym membership and get serious about going.

Time to work on the supper menu and try to create a few new menus to add to the old stand-by meals. Time to start back to Sunday School, or time to watch less television. You get the drift. Life gets filled up quickly. But how much of what we add to our schedules really makes that much difference?

Two of my grandchildren received Nerf guns for Christmas. This is the new thing. They can wage war with the neighborhood kids without anyone really getting hurt. I looked out the window to see my daughter deep into a battle with Nate. I’m not sure who won the battle, but I know who won the war. There is nothing more valuable than time spent with our children. Someday they will forget the gift, but not the time Mom spent outside seeking cover or aiming (poorly I might add) at the enemy (Nate). They eventually came inside laughing and tired.

There is too much of a work-mentality among Christians. “We will play when we get the yard done.” Or, “We will go to the park when the garden is weeded.” Unfortunately, the day ends and the play never came. There will always be work to do. We need to make time to play.

Play needs to have the same importance as the neat yard or the clean house. It is an investment in our children and their future. Play reduces stress, releases happy hormones, and induces better sleep. Besides, play creates great stories to share years later.

Take time to do something fun today, either with the young ones in your family, or as a special treat just for you. I love the short road-trips my husband and I take on occasion. We live together, but it is amazing how much more we talk when we are in the car together with no television, no computer, and no chores stealing our time.

So go and play! Start a snowball fight, go for a drive, plan a craft night, or buy one of those Nerf guns and start a war!

Blessings to you this week! Let me know how you added fun and play to your schedule this week and what you learned from it ...

Regina